Where Do We Go From Here?
by NarcoGilmore
Summary: The road trip to Charlotte turns out to be more of an awakening for Rory. When someone from her past pops back into her life, she realizes that she made a mistake. Logan doesn't show up at the wedding in this version...someone else does instead. NARCO
1. Chapter 1

In the last episode the girls took a road trip to Charlotte, NC. It's safe to say throughout the episode Rory was not very happy with Logan, even after his visit. We are just going to pretend that little intrusion on her privacy never happened in the first place. Instead she will be running into someone else (that would be Dean for those of you just starting to read my stories.) It's a surprising and happy reunion especially once Rory finds out what Dean is doing in Charlotte in the first place.

"Lorelai would you please hurry up, I called to wake you up at eight so that you would be ready by now. We still have to go to the mall before we go to Mia's wedding. As informal as it may be I can't possibly show up in this." Emily said motioning to the outfit she was wearing.

"Grandma really you look fine, I'm sure that Mia won't…" Rory tried to help but was unsuccessful.

"Rory that's nonsense, I was invited to a wedding and I insist on showing up in at least semi decent last minute attire."

"Alright mom, I'm ready. Please let's go so that we're not late." Lorelai insisted motioning towards the door. "I can't believe you call us at eight and expect us to be ready when you knock on the door at nine."

"Lorelai please, I did not ask to be invited to this wedding. But now that I am I must find something to wear, why is that so hard for you to understand?"

"It's not please let's go."

The ride to the mall was quiet except for the show tunes that played softly on the radio. Once they pulled into the parking space Lorelai was the first to get out of the car. She was quickly joined by Rory and Emily.

"This shouldn't take long. This is a halfway decent town; there should at least be a few nice stores in this mall." Lorelai stared at her mother irritated with the comments she had been making all morning. "Oh Rory, that reminds me. Have you applied at the Charlotte Observer; it's a very respectable paper. While we are here you should look into it."

"Actually Grandma I haven't but you're right maybe I should."

They all entered the mall and walked over to the map that was immediately in front of the entrance.

Rory began to rub her stomach at the sight of the food court area. "Hey I think I'm going to grab a quick bite to eat, I'm starving."

"Don't you want to wait and eat whatever Mia has for us?" Lorelai asked.

"Mom please, did you just meet me? I can eat twice."

"Yes you can…hey you know what? So can I. I will join you for a bite to eat while Grandma finds her outfit."

"I don't think so Lorelai, I need you to come with me. What if I get something that I need help zipping up in the back?"

"But mom I'm hungry." Lorelai argued. "And if Rory gets to eat why can't I?"

"Lorelai please stop acting like a child. You didn't once mention food until Rory brought the subject up. Rory enjoy your breakfast; we will call your cell when we are heading back to the car. Come with me Lorelai."

Lorelai followed her mother but not before turning back to Rory and sticking out her tongue at her. Rory simply shrugged her shoulders and mouthed I'm sorry to her mother. As she made her way closer to the food court she began to stare up at the signs of her choices instead of paying closer attention to where she was walking. As she bumped into the tall stranger her attention went directly to the floor where his books landed.

"Oh I am so sorry." She began to apologize as she bent down and helped pick up the books, knowing that it was her that caused the collision.

"That's okay, it was an accident. Don't worry about it." He noticed something oddly familiar about this girl as he watched her pick up the last book. When she stood back up he saw her face, his heart began to beat faster and it seemed that he forgot that he needed to breathe in that moment. He waited for her to realize who he was before speaking again but it took a moment as she continued on about the book in her hand.

"Oh no, Physics, I had to take this class my freshman year in college. Because of it I had to drop another class. Hopefully you're having better luck then me." She said casually as she handed the book back to him finally making eye contact with him.

"Yeah I remember, I was there." He said casually finally finding his voice.

She thought about what he said for a moment before responding. He was right, he was there then…he was always there when she needed him. And now he was here again, the question was did she still need him?

"Dean…what are you doing here?"

"I live here. What are you doing here?"

"Mia is getting married…my mom and I came for the wedding."

"Mia?" Dean asked not sure who that was.

"The lady who owned the Independence Inn before it burnt down."

"Oh yeah that's right."

"So what about you? You live here now…I thought you were still in Star's Hollow?"

"No actually I've been here now for almost two years."

"And you're going to school?" She asked motioning towards the books in his hand.

"Yeah that's why I moved here actually, I got accepted to UNC."

"I didn't know you even applied here."

"Well that's because I didn't until after we broke up."

"Oh. I guess that explains why I didn't know."

"Yeah." Dean shifted becoming noticeably uncomfortable.

"So you have school on a Saturday?"

"Oh no, no class, but I still have plenty of homework to catch up on. I was able to get some grants to help with the tuition but in order to keep them I have to maintain a C average. Physics has been kicking my ass too. You know actually I should get going; I've got a lot to get done. But it was really nice seeing you."

"Yeah it was nice seeing you too." She watched him begin to walk away and suddenly became panicked at the thought of just letting him walk away. "Dean…wait."

He hadn't gotten far before he heard her call his name. "Yeah?"

"Are you going to be studying late tonight? I was hoping maybe we could have dinner or something before I have to leave." She asked walking closer towards him.

"Well the library closes at six so I'll definitely be done by then. How long are you going to be here?"

"We're leaving tomorrow."

"Okay well we can do whatever, just give me a call when you're done with the wedding." He replied and began to walk away again.

"Dean wait, I don't have your number."

"It's the same number I've always had."

"I actually got a new phone last year so the numbers I had stored…"

"Okay, let me see it." He asked pointing to her phone. She handed it to him and watched as he entered the number and pressed send so that it would store itself in her recent calls. "There you go, just press redial."

"Alright, I'll try to leave as early as I can tonight."

"Don't feel rushed…I'll wait. I'm actually pretty good at that." He waved goodbye before walking away this time. "Have fun at the wedding."

Rory smiled and nodded as she watched him walk away.

**A/N: Well this is the first chapter of my new story. I hope everyone enjoys it. As an added bonus anyone who has access to my myspace page can read the first 300 words of chapter 2. It is posted now. You can access it by searching for display name: narcogilmore or by going to my profile page here. **


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: You guys have been so great with the reviews for this story, I thought I would give you a gift and update now instead of waiting three weeks like I normally do. Keep the reviews coming…they really do make me type faster.

"Hey kiddo, you okay you haven't said much since we left the mall earlier." Lorelai asked as they mingled together after the wedding.

"Oh yeah I'm fine. I've just got a lot on my mind is all."

"Are you still worried about Logan? There isn't a whole lot you can do to help the situation."

"I know that…I'm not thinking about Logan."

"Well if it matters I think you seem happier now. So what ever it is you're doing to keep your mind off of him keep doing it."

"Oh I meant to tell you I ran into someone who I used to go to school with earlier while we were at the mall."

"Oh yeah from Yale?" Lorelai asked surprised.

"No actually I went to high school with them." She explained trying to stay the closest to the truth as possible. "Anyways I said I would meet him for dinner if I had time, so do you think Mia would be really upset if I left a little earlier then you?"

"Oh well I'm sure she will understand, just make sure you say goodbye."

"Yeah of course. What about grandma, you think she will be mad?"

"Yes she will be mad but if she wasn't then she wouldn't be your grandma."

"Excuse me girls, but Lorelai could I borrow you for a moment. I need some help moving the presents into the other room." Another guest that Lorelai seemed to know pretty well asked.

"Oh yeah sure, I'll be right there. Rory go ahead and meet your friend, call me if you're going to be too late though."

"Alright, thanks mom."

Rory walked outside into the front yard and searched for his number in the phone. Once she found it, she took a deep breath and pressed call. A few moments later she heard his voice on the other end.

"Hello?"

"Dean, its Rory."

"Oh hey I was wondering if you were going to call."

"I told you I would."

"I know…I still wasn't sure if you would though."

"Well did you still want to have dinner with me?"

"Yeah of course."

"Do you think you could come pick me up?"

"Where are you?"

"Mia's house, I could give you the address."

"That would be helpful." He said laughing a little causing Rory to smile.

"Why do I get the feeling you're making fun of me?"

"I would never make fun of you. Just give me the address I'll be there in half an hour."

Rory gave him the address and quickly ended the call. When she hung up the phone she looked around to make sure that no one else was listening to her conversation. There really was no reason to keep this a secret but she still felt like she should. As she walked back inside she searched for Mia. Once she spotted her she waved to get her attention.

"Mia, the wedding was beautiful." She said finally making her way to her.

"Thanks hon and thank you so much for coming. I know how busy you've been lately I'm really glad you could make it."

"I'm really glad I did."

"Rory are you feeling okay? Your cheeks are really flushed; you don't have a fever do you?"

"Oh no Mia I'm fine. I was just outside; it must be the change in climate. It's a lot warmer here then it is in Star's Hollow." Mia noticed the awkward behavior Rory was displaying but decided not to comment on it. "Anyways I just wanted to say goodbye."

"Oh are you all leaving already?" She asked disappointed.

"No Just me. I'm actually having dinner with an old friend I ran into this morning."

"Okay well have a good time. And I hope that you and your mother will visit us more often. I miss you girls so much."

"I might just take you up on that offer Mia…there are actually a few papers here I would like to apply for."

"That sounds great…come here." Mia pulled her in for a big hug.

A few minutes later Rory managed to slip back outside hoping that no one noticed her leaving. Just in time to see a car parked in the driveway and Dean stepping out of the driver's side. She panicked when she saw him about to approach the house.

"Dean its okay you don't have to get out, I'm ready." She yelled as she ran towards him and the car.

Dean watched as she opened her door and quickly got into the car, he waited a moment and joined her. Neither of them had noticed Emily staring out of the window.

"Thanks for coming to get me." Rory said breaking the silence as they finally started down the road. "My grandma drove so I can't exactly borrow the car."

"Yeah sure no problem." Dean looked at her for a moment trying to read her thoughts. "Is everything okay?"

"Yeah why do you ask?"

"Well earlier on the phone you were sort of whispering, like you didn't want anyone to hear you."

"I was at a wedding reception…I didn't want to be rude."

"Did you tell your mom that you ran into me…or that we were going to dinner tonight?"

"Why does it matter?"

"It doesn't." Rory watched him as he stared straight ahead.

"Dean what are you trying to ask me?"

"You're still with him aren't you?" Rory didn't know how to answer that question, so she sat quietly fidgeting with her hands. "I'll take that silence as a yes."

"Dean…"

"It's okay…I didn't expect you to say no." Dean swallowed the lump that had formed in his throat. "I just don't know what were doing here. Why are we doing this?"

"I just thought it would be nice to talk to you, it's been two years since I've had a conversation with you. I don't like just cutting people out of my life." Dean shook his head and laughed at her comment. "Why are you laughing?"

"You have no idea how hard this has been for me do you? I thought I could go away and start all over, forget about you, forget about us. It didn't take me long to realize that no matter what I did or where I went that I would never stop loving you. And then I see you, I bump into you here, of all the places."

"I'm sorry Dean. I've been so horrible to you and you haven't deserved any of it. If it helps any, if I had a chance to do it all over again, I would choose you."

Dean looked over at her and they made eye contact. This time it wasn't awkward or unintentional, it was awakening.

"Do you live on campus?" Rory asked unexpectedly.

"No, I live in an apartment near campus. Why do you ask that?"

"Let's go there instead."


	3. Chapter 3

They were both quiet as they made the walk up to his door. Rory took in her surroundings as Dean found the key to the door and for the first time realized how noisy this city really was.

"Are the cars always this loud?" Rory asked.

"No, it's just a busy time right now. It's not like New York quite yet."

"Oh well that's good I guess."

"Yeah…well this is it." He said opening the door for her.

Rory stepped inside. It was dark at first while she waited for Dean to turn on the lights and shut the door. When the room was finally illuminated she began to look around nervously.

"Um sorry about the mess, I haven't been home all day today and I sort of wasn't expecting anyone."

"Oh no Dean don't worry about that, it doesn't even matter. I'm here to see you, not your mess."

Dean laughed. "Well that's good to know but in my defense this isn't all mine."

"Oh you have roommates?"

"A roommate."

"Is he home?"

Dean peered around the corner for a moment. "It doesn't sound like it."

"He's a loud one huh?"

"Sort of…um you want something to drink?" Dean asked motioning towards the kitchen.

"Sure, a water would be great."

Dean returned a few moments later with two bottles of water.

"So should we sit down or something?"

"Yeah let's sit." Rory moved to the couch first and Dean followed keeping a safe distance.

Being unable to figure out exactly why she wanted to come back here was beginning to get to him. All the thoughts in his head seemed to be screaming and the silence between the two of them didn't help it any.

"So why did we…um…why" Dean couldn't quite find what he needed to ask.

"Why did we come here?" Rory easily managed to get out.

"Yeah, I mean I don't want to weird you out but to be honest I'm feeling really nervous right now."

"I'm making you nervous?" Rory asked in a little girl voice teasing a little.

"You've always made me nervous…but tonight you're doing an even more exceptional job of it."

"I wanted to be with you…to be able to talk or whatever. I just thought it would be better to talk here instead of a noisy restaurant."

"Alright well what did you want to talk about?"

"Well what are you going to school for?"

"Architecture, I ended up coming here because UNC is actually the school Tom went to, he recommended it."

"Wow does this mean someone else in Star's Hollow will own their own construction company in a few years?" Rory grinned.

"Well I'm only in my second year and it's a five year program and as for Star's Hollow I'm not too sure if I'll be moving back there."

Rory's smile slowly faded. "Why?"

_Oh I had a lot to say _

_Was thinking on my time away  
I missed you and things weren't the same  
Cause everything inside it never comes out right  
And when I see you cry it makes me want to die_

"Well for starters my life is here now. There are just too many bad memories there and it's nice being somewhere else where no one knows you or anything about your past. I'm tired of being that guy that cheated on his wife." Dean's eyes looked down to the ground as he finished what he had to say.

"Dean no one knows what really happened between all of us."

"Yes they do, it's just that no one blames you for what happened, and they shouldn't." Dean noticed the confused look on Rory's face. "You and Lorelai stayed quiet but that doesn't mean that Lindsay and her family did." Dean tried to explain.

Rory was shocked; she thought she had done so well keeping all of this a secret for so long. "I can't believe everyone knows and no one has ever said anything to me about it."

"They love you there Rory, they would never hurt you."

"I'm so sorry Dean; I never realized everything you were dealing with before. I just wish that we could have talked, it's been so hard just completely shutting you out of my life."

_I'm sorry I'm bad, I'm sorry I'm blue, I'm sorry about all things I said to you  
And I know I can't take it back  
I love how you kiss, I love all your sounds, and baby the way you make my world go round  
And I just wanted to say I'm sorry…_

_This time I think I'm to blame it's harder to get through the days  
You get older and blame turns to shame_

"Hey it's okay….everything is fine now." She still looked worried. "Really I'm okay. Everything happens for a reason." He tried to assure her everything was fine, he could see that she was upset and on the verge of tears.

He reached for her and pulled her closer. As they embraced in a hug she took in the smell of his cologne and at that moment she wanted nothing more then to be even closer to him. She pulled away a little to look at him but her arms remained wrapped tightly around him, as did his around her.

"I don't want to just be a bad memory to you anymore."

Dean didn't respond to her with words but with a kiss instead.

_Every single day I think about how we came all this way  
The sleepless nights and the tears you cried it's never too late to make it right  
Oh yeah sorry!_

_A/N: Song in italics belongs to Buckcherry…if you haven't heard it yet, you must. Go to my myspace page, it's on the music player. _

_Oh yeah and remember lots of reviewsfaster updates. _


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I'm sad to see that Gilmore Girls is going away after only one more episode but I'm also happy that I started this story when I did. Now I can use this to continue on to the ending I wish we could have had instead.

Dean pulled away from her hesitating to continue.

"What's wrong?" She asked.

"We shouldn't do this…I mean we can't do this. Not unless we're both committed to each other. I can't pretend that there isn't someone else."

"There's someone else?" Rory asked afraid and misunderstanding what Dean had meant.

Dean let out a small laugh. "Not for me but you're with Logan now."

"Didn't I mention earlier that things aren't so great between Logan and I?"

"No you didn't say much at all on the subject actually. And that still doesn't change the fact that you're still with him."

"Yes technically but I'm not the only one who is struggling to find reasons for us to stay together. I think we're both just trying to ignore the obvious hoping that our feelings will change."

"Are you sure you didn't get married? Because all of this is starting to sound vaguely familiar."

"No I didn't get married." She stared at him for a while studying him, he used the moment as an opportunity to do the same. "I'm really glad we ran into each other today." She told him reaching for his hand to hold in hers.

"I'm really glad you ran into me today as well, I'm bruised from it, but I'm still glad."

"Shut up you do not have a bruise." She said playfully hitting him.

"Okay I don't have a bruise, but it did hurt for a second." They both smiled at one another for a moment. "And it's going to hurt a lot more to see you walk away again."

Rory stood up from the couch, not letting go of his hand. "Come on, you didn't give me the full tour yet. I still haven't seen your bedroom."

Dean found it to be very amusing as she led the way towards the bedrooms after asking him for a tour. She reached the first door and turned back to look at him for some direction. He nodded indicating that she was at the right room.

"So this is your room?" Rory asked stating the obvious.

"Yeah, this is it."

"I like it." She whispered walking closer to him. "It's reminds me of you."

"I can't imagine why."

"So how's the bed…comfy?" She asked as she walked over and took a seat on the edge of it.

"I think so. Did you want to stay the night? If you do I don't mind sleeping on the couch, you can have my room."

"I would love to stay here, but you're not sleeping on the couch."

"Rory come on, I'm not going to make you sleep on the couch."

"I'm not sleeping on the couch either." She explained making herself comfortable against the pillows.

Not sure how to react Dean stood for a while longer thinking about what Rory just said. Not that he wasn't appreciative of the situation, but he wanted so badly to know how Rory truly felt, he wanted to know for sure that this wasn't her revenge to something Logan had done.

"Dean?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you think it's possible to meet the person you want to be with for the rest of your life when you're only sixteen?"

"Yeah I do."

"I've realized that you're the one, I think I've always known that. It used to scare me; I think that's why I pushed you away so much. I fell in love with you the moment that I saw you, I would have never told you that at the time, but I did." Rory smiled at Dean and he moved over to the side of the bed and took a seat. "Did you know that after I ran into you at school that day I went home that night and told my mom that I didn't want to transfer to Chilton anymore? I made up a story about being afraid that I wouldn't fit in or that I wouldn't do well there but it was because of you. She of course saw right through the lie and lectured me about not making decisions based on what a boy is doing."

"You did not do that..."

"Ask her if you don't believe me. I'm sure she will love the chance to embarrass me."

"I just can't believe you wanted to give up an opportunity like that, I mean you had just met me."

"I know and sometimes I wonder how different things would have turned out if I had gone to Stars Hollow High instead. Particularly between me and you, I mean if I had been there you would have never talked to Lindsay in the first place." Rory said in a jealous tone.

"Oh yeah…" Dean said laughing at her now.

"Yeah and maybe it would have been me who you proposed to."

"Things would have been different; you wanted to go to Harvard. I would have never stood in the way of that."

"Sometimes I wish you would have." Rory said sadly.

"Rory what's wrong? Where is all of this coming from?"

"Nothings wrong, it's just that with graduation coming up soon, there just haven't been many job offers or internships for that matter. I'm beginning to feel like the last eight years have been for nothing and to top it all off I also lost you. I just want to be happy again."

"Rory it's still early you're going to get plenty of job offers. Any paper would be lucky to have you and one day they're all going to know that."

"You know there is actually a paper here in Charlotte I was thinking of applying at. Maybe if I get the job we could get a place together."

"Alright just so I know I'm hearing you right, you just said that you wanted to get a job here in Charlotte and move in together, correct?"

"That is definitely something I would like for us to consider."

"Rory don't get me wrong, all of this sounds amazing. It's actually been a recurring dream of mine but I don't understand where this all came from all of a sudden. I have to know that you're doing this for the right reasons and not because you're running from something else."

"I really hurt you didn't I? You don't even trust me anymore."

"Rory…it's not that."

"No it's okay, I wouldn't trust me either."

"That's just it; I do trust you and I still love you. So unless this is really what you want…"

"You're what I want."

He stared at her for a moment realizing how scared she looked waiting for his response. In that moment all he wanted to do was hold her and make her smile again. It was finally happening, not being able to hold back any longer.


	5. Chapter 5

They pulled up to the hotel Lorelai and Rory had stayed the previous night.

"Thanks for the ride." Rory said as the car came to a stop.

"It's not over yet." He explained putting the car in park and meeting her halfway in the middle for a kiss.

"Hhmm, I wish I could stay with you."

"I wish we could stay together too but the sooner we get back to reality the sooner we can be together."

"I'll call you as soon as I get home okay?" Rory said with a smile.

"Yeah, I'll be looking forward to it." He said smiling back. "You want me to walk you inside?"

"I don't know if that's such a good idea right now. My mom didn't know much about where I was going last night and I also realized this morning that I never called to tell her I wouldn't be coming back."

"She's going to be really mad." Dean said stating the obvious.

"Yeah, I'd say. I also have twenty-three missed calls from her on my cell…it was on silent from the wedding."

"I'm actually scared for you right now. I'm thinking it will be in your best interest to just come back with me now." Dean said with a huge grin.

"You might be right, but I have to talk to her." Silence once again spread throughout the car as both tried to find what they wanted to say to each other.

"Maybe I can come see you, I don't have classes on Fridays and we could just spend a long weekend together." Dean suggested.

"Really? When would you want to come?"

"Whenever, just let me know when it's convenient for you."

"Every weekend is convenient for me."

"That could get expensive."

"Yeah I guess so, let's decide later. By the time I call you tonight we will both have time to think about it."

"Okay." Rory reached for the handle to open her door but turned around to face Dean just before getting out.

"Dean?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"I love you too."

Rory continued the climb out of the car and walked away a little before looking back. She waved goodbye as Dean watched her walk away. As she reached the room she took a deep breath before going inside.

"Mom…are you here?" She asked sitting her stuff on the bed.

Lorelai rushed out of the bathroom. "Mom? Did you call for mom? You couldn't possibly be my daughter. You see my daughter wouldn't go away with someone in a strange town and stay with them overnight. No, not my kid, she would have at least called me or even answered the phone one of the many times I called her to inform me of what is going on."

"I'm sorry mom; my phone was on silent from the wedding. I didn't notice the missed calls until this morning. I'm really sorry that I didn't call you but if it helps I come back with really good news." Rory said this trying to get her attention.

"Oh yeah…well if you want you can just wait for your Grandma to get here and let her know because apparently she is my new source to know what's going on with you." Lorelai said angrily.

"Mom what are you talking about? I didn't tell Grandma anything."

"It was one of those moments for me you know? The moment where you realize that something has changed, that what you thought you had is now gone. I thought you were able to talk to me about stuff Rory, I thought we could talk about anything."

"We can, I don't understand what's…"

"Then why did I have to find out from my mother that you left the house last night with Dean?" Rory didn't know what to say in that moment and began to wonder how her Grandmother could possibly know about Dean. "Yeah that's perfect, that's almost the same exact face I had when I realized what she was telling me was true."

"I don't know how she knew, I didn't tell her anything. I didn't even tell her that I was leaving."

"Next time meet him down the street instead of the driveway. And what the hell are you doing anyway meeting Dean like that and staying the night with him? I know you and Logan are going through a rough time right now but this isn't the way to fix things."

"I don't want to fix things with Logan…" Rory admitted as she stared down at her shoes. "I still love Dean…I'm going to tell Logan when we get home."

Lorelai's facial expression went from angry to shocked. "Wait a minute…what exactly happened last night?"

"Well as I was trying to tell you earlier…I have some really good news." She said with a smile.

Lorelai took a seat on the bed knowing that whatever Rory had to tell her was going to be big. Just as Rory was about to speak there was a knock at the door and the voice of Emily on the other side murmuring something about the people next to the pool gawking at her.

"Oh my god, does my mother have the worst timing ever?"

"I can't talk about this in front of Grandma yet?" Rory quickly explained panicking.

"Fine but the two of us are going to sit and have a long chat when we get home." Lorelai said before getting up to answer the door.

Dean walked back inside of the apartment with a huge smile, knowing he had to study he gathered his books from the living room floor and headed to his room. Opening the books he tried to focus but couldn't seem to comprehend anything. All he could think about was her. He jumped as his thoughts were interrupted by his roommate.

"I am so glad you finally got some."

"Excuse me?"

"You finally got laid. And then of course there is the added bonus?"

"The added bonus?" Dean asked confused.

"It was Rory Gilmore right?"

"How did you know that? You weren't even home last night."

"I think I walked in just in time for the finale…that ones a screamer."

"In all fairness, just in case you've had a few too many beers already today, I thought I should warn you that you're about to get your ass kicked."

"Hey sorry, didn't realize it was such a touchy subject with you."

"It's not, you're just being disrespectful."

"I'm being disrespectful? How do you think I knew it was her in the first place? It's not the first time I've had to listen to the two of you…"

"What are you talking about?"

"Dean come on man, the two of us shared an itsy bitsy one bedroom apartment a few years ago when the two of you were pretty hot and heavy with each other."

"Alright fine, enough said. I promise we won't bother you again."

"No it's cool; I'm completely fine with it. Seeing the two of you together is like watching Brady Bunch reruns. It makes me feel all warm inside because it's how things are supposed to be." He began to mock holding his hand and hook up to his chest.

"Well thanks, I think. I really need to get some work done though."

"Yeah sure go ahead, you were obviously busy with other things yesterday. So is she coming back tonight?"

"No, she had to go home to Stars Hollow. We probably won't be able to see each other for a while."

"And you're okay with this?"

"Well not exactly, I wish things could be different but we're both kind of stuck where we are right now."

"You're so blowing this."

"What do you mean?" Dean asked worried.

"It's a crucial moment for the relationship right now, these next couple of days or weeks even could determine a lot."

"There's nothing we can do…we both have school."

"All I know is that if the girl of my dreams walked back into my life, I wouldn't let her walk back out that quickly."

"I have a physics exam tomorrow morning…" Dean said thinking out loud. "Maybe after the exam I can go see her."

"Go now…I can take the exam for you. My first class was cancelled anyway."

"You really think that would work?"

"I did it last semester for a buddy of mine; he had to pay for my services though. Because of the special occasion I'm not going to charge you. Besides I'm way better at it then you are anyway, trust me you'll be better off."

"I can't believe I'm actually listening to you but you're right, I should go before she changes her mind about us."


	6. Chapter 6

Dean pulled into the driveway of the Gilmore residence. It was dark now but he quickly noticed two cars in the driveway, neither of which was driven on the trip. Studying the house for a moment he began to realize that he may have beat them home, after seeing no lights on in the house. Clearly it was his adrenaline alone that got him this far as he felt his eyes slowly want to close.

Awakened by the sudden bright lights of a car entering the driveway he sat up from his slumped position and waited for a familiar face to get out of the car.

"Who could that possibly be at this hour? Doesn't everyone know the two of you are out of town for the wedding this weekend?" Emily asked in her normal tone.

Rory squinted hard to make out the kind of car it was as they pulled in behind it, it looked vaguely familiar.

"Gee mom didn't you know, Rory and I are so loved that we have people waiting for us on our doorsteps all of the time." Lorelai joked.

"Lorelai please, I'm too tired from this trip to listen to you babble. Do you at least know who it is before I just leave the two of you here alone with a stranger?"

"It's someone waiting for me Grandma; it's my ride back to my apartment."

"Rory you didn't have to call someone to come get you, I could have dropped you off on my way home. I told you it wouldn't be a problem."

"I know Grandma, that's okay. Thanks for offering though. I'll see you later." Rory quickly got out of the car feeling awkward about making up that story and knowing that her mother saw right through it, especially considering Rory had her own car with her. She began to walk at a fast pace towards the car.

"Goodnight mom. See you at dinner next week." Lorelai said before closing the door. She watched for a moment as Emily waved goodbye and backed out of the driveway. Her attention was quickly turned back towards the mysterious car as she heard Rory squeal.

"I can't believe you're here. I mean how are you here; don't you have a test tomorrow?" Rory seem to continue to ask questions until Dean stepped out of the car and pulled her into his arms for a big hug.

"Well I tried to study, really I did, but all I could think about was you. Then Kyle convinced me that I should come see you and I have to say it didn't take much convincing." He explained as he leaned in for a kiss.

"So about that long talk we are going to have when we get home, I think it's overdue." Lorelai chimed in as she stood next to the lip locked couple.

"Hey Lorelai…it's nice to see you again."

"It's nice to see you too Dean even though I'm confused as hell right now."

"You didn't tell her?" Dean asked looking back at Rory.

"I haven't really had a chance to talk to her yet, we've been with my Grandma the whole time and it's not really something I'm ready to discuss around her." Rory stared at Dean for a moment and then back to her mother. "Mom, do you think Dean and I could talk for a minute and then we can meet you inside?"

"Fine, I've waited fourteen hours…what's another minute?" Lorelai asked walking away from the couple towards the house.

"I can't believe you're actually here." Rory said with a smile.

"Yeah me either. So is this okay? I mean I didn't know if you would be happy or angry about this but I just really wanted to see."

"Dean of course it's okay. You have no idea how happy I am to see you. The whole ride home I was thinking that I wasn't going to again for a long time. It felt like Christmas morning when I saw that it was your car in the driveway."

"That's good to hear."

"So Kyle is your roommate?"

"Oh yeah, I guess I never did tell you his name did I? We both wanted to go away to school and just decided to go to the same one and still be roommates."

"I actually just moved into an apartment with Paris and her boyfriend."

"Oh yeah, I bet that is lots of fun. Where did you live before that…you still at the dorms?" Dean asked clueless.

Rory looked down shamefully for a moment. "No not exactly. I lived with Logan before that."

Dean's smile slowly faded. "Oh."

"Dean..."

"Rory…"

"I'm sorry you go first." Dean offered.

"I meant what I said last night; I want things to work between us. I want to be able to be honest with you about everything even if that means an awkward silence like we just had. I really do still love you Dean and I'm going to do everything in my power to make this work this time."

"With that said…when are you going to tell him about us?"

"Well I was leaning more towards tomorrow but if it will help you sleep better tonight, I could call now."

"No that's okay. I think I'll sleep just fine with you in my arms."

Rory blushed at the comment but pretended it didn't affect her, even though it did in more ways then one.

"We should go inside; my mom is really confused right now. We should probably fill her in."

"Alright." Dean allowed Rory to lead the way towards the door as she pulled him by the hand. Just as they began to walk up the steps to the front door Dean stopped but didn't let go of her hand.

"Dean what's wrong?"

"Nothing…everything is perfect. You know that feeling you get when you've been away and you come back home for Christmas?"

"Yeah…sort of, I haven't exactly gone too far from home yet."

"That same feeling just washed over me as I stepped onto this porch."


	7. Chapter 7

They walked inside and both instantly could feel Lorelai staring at them from the couch.

"Hey there Dean." Lorelai said loudly from her seat.

"Hi, Lorelai, how are you?"

"Oh me, great. So Rory are you ready to have that conversation you promised we would?"

"Oh yeah but mom I didn't know that Dean was going to be here…"

Lorelai put her hand up to her head as if she had just remembered something. "You know what Dean…I lied, things aren't so great. That water bottle hasn't been changed in almost two weeks."

Rory and Dean both smiled and laughed. "Alright I get it; I'll disappear for a little while."

"Thank you Dean." Lorelai said as he walked towards the kitchen and out of sight.

Rory turned to face her mom once Dean was gone.

"Come sit with me, we have lots to talk about." Lorelai insisted.

"Mom I think it's pretty obvious what's happening." She said walking over to her.

"Yes it is, but I want to know how it happened."

"It was really just a crazy turn of events. We ran into each other in the mall, exchanged numbers and later that night we got together."

"Got together meaning?"

"I didn't come back to the hotel now did I?"

"No, but what about Logan? What happened to make you do this?"

"It's very clear to me now that Logan doesn't care about me. Things would be over between Logan and I regardless if I had ran into Dean this weekend or not. The thing that I hadn't realized was that I still care for Dean…a lot. When I ran into him I felt like I was having a panic attack. I didn't get it at first but when I began to daydream at Mia's wedding." Rory blushed for a moment before continuing. "I just knew that I had to see him before we left."

"What did you daydream about?"

"That it was mine and Dean's wedding instead." Lorelai laughed. "You know it was just one of those moments…I had just seen him for the first time in years and all these feelings came back and it's not my fault we had to go to a wedding."

"Did you tell him about this daydream of yours?"

"No, and you better not mention it either or I will hate you."

"So Dean is back then?"

"Yes Dean is back." Rory said with a smile.

"But he lives in North Carolina now. That is really going to make things difficult for you."

"Yeah it will be for a little while." Rory agreed.

"A little while, how much longer does Dean have before graduation?"

"Well he still has a few years but I'll be done in a month. I'm going to try to get a job with the Charlotte Observer."

"Oh wow, we just took a major step. When did you decide to move there? I mean are you sure this is the right thing for you?"

"Dean is right for me…that's the one thing that I'm sure of. Trust me; this isn't going to be a mistake. I know it seems like we're moving fast but this is really what I want."

"I want you to be happy Rory but I don't want you to settle for something just because of a guy."

"A guy that I love and that loves me back unconditionally. After everything I put him through in the past, Dean is the one taking the risk. And I am so thankful that he is willing to…again. I'm not going to mess this up this time."

Rory noticed tears beginning to form in her mother's eyes. "What's wrong?"

"You're happy and smiling again. You're really fun to be around when you're dating Dean, well most of the time anyway." She joked. "I know he makes you happy."

"But…"

"But you're not going to be here with me anymore to share things with. I'm really going to miss you."

"I'll call everyday and we will visit a lot."

"You promise?"

"I promise."

They began to laugh together as they both wiped away the small tears from their cheeks. Dean had just walked back inside the house and watched the girls from the foyer, not really wanting to interrupt the moment they were having together.

"Everything okay?" Dean asked before entering the room officially.

"Yes Dean everything is going to be fine." Lorelai said with a sniffle. "Come over here and give me a hug, it's only been a few years since I've seen you."

He gave her a quick hug. "What's with the tears, why are the two of you crying?"

"They're happy tears Dean." Rory quickly explained.

"Welcome home Dean."

"Thanks Lorelai, it feels really good to be here again."

"Well I'm beat; I think I'm going to go to bed. Are you two just going to stay here tonight?"

"If you don't mind, I would love to stay here. I don't know if I could drive another mile at this point." Dean quickly stated.

"Of course I don't mind. I'm just going to disappear; I know the two of you want to be alone. I'll see you in the morning."

"Goodnight Lorelai."

Dean turned to face Rory. "So I bet you're pretty tired from the ride back home."

"Yeah a little. No more then you though I guess, I mean you drove the same distance."

"Well do you want to go to bed?" Dean asked.

"To sleep?" Rory asked disappointed.

"Um no, just bed…I said nothing about sleeping."

Rory smiled and began to pull him towards her bedroom.


End file.
